The Good, the Bad and the Ugly at the AMA Festival

By

Jim Fusilli

Sep 23, 2013 4:00 pm ET

Some final thoughts on the Americana Music Association’s annual festival, held this past weekend in Nashville:

The AMA’s board has done a service to popular culture by carving out a niche for, and presenting with respect and admiration, musicians who draw from the well of traditional roots music, including country music. Thus, it’s made a home for country musicians and fans who are less than enthralled by the contemporary, occasionally cartoonish country scene. With its Honors and Awards gala broadcast live on AXS TV and now part of NPR Music’s audio archive – a PBS special is coming soon – the AMA is giving needed exposure to artists who otherwise might be overlooked if only because they fail to fit neatly in any other existing mainstream category.

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